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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272903">Fingertips</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_genderman/pseuds/the_genderman'>the_genderman</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Wars Sequel Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Co-commanders with benefits, Fade to Black, Finger Sucking, Flirting, Germaphobe Hux, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Kylo Ren Being a Little Shit, Lewdness, M/M, POV Armitage Hux, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Rivals With Benefits</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 21:46:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,016</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272903</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_genderman/pseuds/the_genderman</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Ren’s pain is nothing to be laughed at, except when it is. If Hux has to keep his co-commander in check while he heals up, he might as well make the best of the situation.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Armitage Hux/Kylo Ren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Kylux Secret Santa 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Fingertips</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/mataestrella/gifts">ono no komachi sings mitski blues (mataestrella)</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Broken bones were never fun. Oh, healing could be accelerated for most bones, but not the jaw. Teeth tended to react poorly to the treatment. Ren argued, as he was wont to do, but a medical droid can’t be bullied. Destroyed, maybe, but not bullied. And if you destroy too many medical droids, well, then you don’t get treated. Ren wasn’t stupid. And so, after some argument for the sake of argument, he had given in and allowed his broken jaw to be wired shut to knit itself back together naturally. </p>
<p>Didn’t mean he was taking it well. </p>
<p>However, one man’s pain could also be another man’s entertainment. Hux was having a slight bit of difficulty maintaining his usual composure on the bridge. Ren’s mask’s vocoder and the wires holding his broken jaw in place had combined to make his speech nearly unintelligible, and so he had taken to giving orders directly into the bridge crew’s heads. It was… <i>highly</i> entertaining to see their reactions. Watching one officer after another twitch, startle, or jump, making the most undignified noises as they suddenly found Ren’s voice taking up residence in their skulls. Hux knew he shouldn’t laugh, it was only a matter of time before Ren intruded into his brain, but until then… </p>
<p>Oh, that was a good one. He actually snorted a little as Mitaka yelped and lost his footing, stumbling back and landing squarely on his arse. Feeling the impression of eyes on him, Hux glanced covertly around, but it appeared as if most of the bridge crew was busy either watching Mitaka climb back to his feet, trying to continue as if nothing had happened, or they were suddenly extremely focused on their consoles. Hux sighed internally and frowned a little. If he couldn’t locate the person watching him, there were two answers: either he was losing his touch, or it was Ren, hidden under that mask of his.</p>
<p>Let’s just say he had a <i>complicated</i> relationship with Kylo Ren. Officially, Hux and Ren were co-commanders of the Finalizer. Officially, they had a somewhat strained relationship, both being Snoke’s protégés, both being ambitious and hungry for advancement within the Order, and being rather prickly towards each other in public. Unofficially, that was still true in private as well, but Ren might also occasionally find his way to Hux’s quarters after hours and Hux didn’t always turn him out.</p>
<p><i>General</i>. Ah, there it was. Ren’s voice in his head. Hux managed to straighten his already ramrod stiff posture, determined not to show the same kind of laughable responses the crew had shown. He was their commander. He didn’t show weakness, even if Ren’s abilities did sometimes unnerve him.</p>
<p><i><b>Hux</b></i>. More insistent. Using his name rather than his title. He probably ought to respond quickly, before Ren did something drastic and likely physical.</p>
<p>“Yes, Ren?” Hux answered, trying to sound appropriately unruffled.</p>
<p><i>We need to speak. Privately</i>, Kylo said insistently.</p>
<p><i>And this isn’t private enough?</i> Hux replied silently, knowing from the slight pressure at the base of his skull that Ren was still occupying his thoughts.</p>
<p>
  <i>No. Conference room A-27 is currently unoccupied. Follow me there.</i>
</p>
<p>“Very well,” Hux replied, out loud again. He knew that tone. One way or another, he didn’t want to have this conversation in public. “When?”</p>
<p><i>Now</i>, Kylo said, sweeping out the doors.</p>
<p>“Tervis, you have the bridge until my return,” Hux said, turning to follow Ren.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>----------</p>
</div>“What is it that you couldn’t say on the bridge? What is so private in nature that it can only be spoken behind closed doors, but also so urgent that it must be said right now?” Hux asked, locking the conference room door and turning to glare at Ren.<p>Kylo removed his mask and sat down in one of the conference room’s chairs, swiveling it to face Hux. He grimaced, lips peeled back and teeth bared. He removed his gloves and, with one fingernail, picked at the wires holding his jaw shut.</p>
<p>Hux gave a grimace of his own, biting back a shudder at Ren’s actions. Given the general disrepair of his clothes, how clean could his fingernails be? He shouldn’t be picking at the wires.</p>
<p>“Ren! Get your finger out of your mouth,” Hux said, stepping forward to stand disapprovingly over him, and resisting the urge to slap his hand away from his face… he was a little afraid Ren might enjoy that.</p>
<p>Glaring up at Hux, Kylo closed his lips around his finger and withdrew it with a wet pop.</p>
<p>“Yes. Now what did you remove me from the bridge for? It couldn’t possibly have been just to torment me with your personal hygiene,” Hux said, trying not to give Ren the response he so clearly wanted.</p>
<p><i>On the bridge, you were actually <b>laughing</b>. I’ve never heard you laugh before. Were you laughing at me? Do you take pleasure in my discomfort?</i>, Kylo said, still speaking in Hux’s head and sounding suddenly petulant. His moods were mercurial, and when he wore his mask, Hux could sometimes forget how young he was. How sheltered from the real world he had been, growing up surrounded by the wealth and excesses of the New Republic Core Worlds and the haughty Jedi who believed themselves better than their peers simply because of the nature of their birth.</p>
<p>“No, I was not,” Hux said, sitting down in the chair next to Ren. A pause, Ren’s eyes on him, still disbelieving. “Alright, maybe a little, but mostly I was laughing at the crew and their reactions. I know you saw the way Mitaka jumped like he had been scalded. Don’t tell me you didn’t find that funny. Also, <i>why</i> would you think I was laughing at <i>you</i> when Mitaka was right there?”</p>
<p><i>You never hesitate to tell me when you think I’m making the wrong decision. I was expecting an ‘I told you so’ or an ‘actions have consequences, Ren.’</i> Kylo said, managing to perfectly copy Hux’s speech—accent, tone, everything.</p>
<p>Hux gave a slight nod and raised his eyebrows, silently admitting the validity of Ren’s complaint. And trying to ignore the unnerving feeling of hearing his own voice in his head, but knowing it wasn’t his own thoughts. Well. He <i>did</i> have a tendency to flaunt it when he turned out to be right and Ren wrong, but mostly because Ren’s instincts were rarely wrong and he so infrequently got that opportunity. Ren might be young, he might be still relatively new to the Finalizer, but he was intelligent and a capable co-commander… when he wasn’t having one of his temper tantrums.</p>
<p>“I believe your broken jaw should serve as enough of an ‘I told you so’,” Hux said. “There’s no need for me to further humiliate you…”</p>
<p>Hux trailed off, noticing that Ren’s finger had once again entered his mouth.</p>
<p>“…Unless it will take humiliation to get you to stop picking at the wires. You need to leave it alone, allow it to heal.”</p>
<p>
  <i>But it itches.</i>
</p>
<p>“Yes. And as you said, actions have consequences, Ren,” Hux tossed back at him, less sharply than he might usually have done. “I’m sure Medical can get you something for that.”</p>
<p><i>They did, but then it’s just numb. I like that even less</i>, Kylo said, folding his hands in his lap in an attempt to leave his injury alone.</p>
<p>“Well then put your mask back on, that at least seems to stop you from putting your fingers in your mouth. And if that’s all you have to say to me, I will be returning to the bridge,” Hux said, standing up and smoothing infinitesimal wrinkles out of his uniform. “This was a waste of my time and I don’t like leaving Tervis in charge for too long, even in such a temporary fashion. I can’t help feeling that he has designs on my ship.”</p>
<p><i>I can talk to Snoke, find a reason to have him reassigned. Or else I could find reason to deal with him, if you’d prefer</i>, Kylo said, rising to his feet and following Hux. <i>He irritates me as well. I might have an answer by tomorrow evening. Should I keep you informed?</i></p>
<p>“Please do.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>----------</p>
</div>When Hux returned to his quarters after his shift, he found Ren already seated on his couch, mask and cowl removed and sitting on the end table. Well, Ren wasn’t just seated, but more sprawled out most obscenely, legs spread and arms draped across the back of the couch. Watching Hux as he entered his own quarters. Hux sighed.<p>“Really? You couldn’t ask before just letting yourself in?” Hux said, hanging up his greatcoat in the coat closet.</p>
<p><i>I could have broken the locking mechanism. I made an effort this time so that I didn’t. You should be grateful</i>, Kylo replied.</p>
<p>“Oh, yes, of course. Grateful that my co-commander isn’t breaking my ship. That’s the most basic of expectations—that you don’t deliberately destroy the ship you’re serving on—and still you can’t be trusted to do even that,” Hux said, scowling and moving to stand in front of Ren. There wasn’t really a good place left to sit down. “I assume the reason you’re here is that you have the information you promised?”</p>
<p>
  <i>Yes. Tervis has been dealt with.</i>
</p>
<p>“Should I even ask?”</p>
<p><i>He’s been reassigned to the Harbinger. I just wanted to see your reaction</i>, Kylo said with a smirk, followed immediately by a grimace of pain. He reached up to pick at his wires.</p>
<p>“Would you stop that!” Hux ordered, hands involuntarily clenching into fists at his sides. “Am I going to have to put Millicent’s veterinary cone on you?”</p>
<p>Kylo actually paused, finger still in his mouth. <i>Why are you so bothered? I’ve had your fingers in my mouth multiple times before</i>.</p>
<p>“I allow your oral fixation because I keep my hands impeccably clean.”</p>
<p>
  <i>I’ve also had your cock in my mouth; what’s a finger to that?</i>
</p>
<p>“I wash my penis, too. And given what I know of your general comportment, I have to wonder: when was the last time you washed your hands?” Hux said with a repressed shudder. “Your jaw is wired shut. You had an open wound in your mouth only two days ago. Can you really afford to risk reopening it and infecting it with whatever filth you’ve collected under your fingernails?”</p>
<p><i>My hands are clean</i>, Kylo said, standing up so he would be at eye-level with Hux. He removed his finger from his mouth, and raised both hands, showing Hux first the backs, then the palms. <i>Would you like to watch me wash them again, so you can be certain?</i></p>
<p>“Why, so you can put them right back into your mouth?” Hux asked, scowling and standing firm and refusing to be intimidated by Ren and his lack of respect for personal space. <i>Especially</i> in his own quarters.</p>
<p><i>Oh, I can think of something else I’d like to do with them</i>, Kylo said, smirking again. He reached out to place one hand on Hux’s jaw, lightly tracing his fingers down to his chin, before reluctantly pulling back. <i>Come with me. Assure yourself that they’re clean enough to meet your standards</i>.</p>
<p>Hux hesitated.</p>
<p><i>Just <b>indulge</b> me. Please? I’ll tell you. Eventually</i>, Kylo sighed.</p>
<p>Well, Ren <i>did</i> say ‘please.’ That was rare enough that Hux supposed he could see where this was going. “Oh, very well.”</p>
<p>With a smug little nod that meant Hux knew he’d probably never live this down, Ren swept off through his bedroom to the refresher. Hux followed. He watched as Ren opened his cabinets, poking around like he wasn’t entirely sure where what he was looking for was kept. Hux didn’t particularly care to allow Ren the freedom to rifle through his things, but when he got an idea in his head, it was often easiest to allow him to see it through to completion. He watched as Ren located his nail brush, shut the cabinet, and began to wash his hands, scrubbing beneath his nails. Perhaps a bit more theatrically than was entirely necessary, but he certainly was being thorough.</p>
<p><i>Happy?</i> Kylo asked, drying his hands and holding them out for Hux to inspect.</p>
<p>“I suppose they are sufficiently clean,” Hux replied, taking one of Ren’s hands in his to inspect the nails a little more closely. “Now will you tell me what you’re planning?”</p>
<p><i>This</i>, Kylo said, smirking again and reaching out to take Hux’s chin in his hand. He ran the pad of his thumb lightly over his lips while guiding him out of the refresher, stopping in his bedroom. <i>You say I have an oral fixation. <b>I</b> say you don’t have enough of one. I think you’ll enjoy it if you try it. Let me do this for you</i>.</p>
<p>Hux screwed his eyes shut and pinched his lips together, but he allowed Ren to lead him to his bed. The idea of having Ren’s fingers in his mouth was… complicated. The idea of having something other than food, drink, or a cigarra in his mouth made him uncomfortable, just another thing he couldn’t control—what it was or where it had been. But, on the other hand, Ren <i>had</i> just washed his hands and he hadn’t yet given Hux any immediate reason to distrust him. Any more than his usual baseline distrust, at any rate.</p>
<p><i>I’m not going to hurt you</i>, Kylo said, almost soothingly, as they sat down on the edge of the bed. He pulled Hux in, his fingers firm but gentle. His other hand snaked around Hux’s waist, tugging him closer. <i>Just relax. Let me take care of you. Why do you always fight me? I know you want me, so why do you have to always make it so hard? I want to do this for you. I want you to feel good</i>.</p>
<p>“How will I know what to do?” Hux murmured. Not yet conceding, but he did relax a little, releasing some of the tension from his frame. He kept his eyes closed, though less tightly—he didn’t need Ren’s ever-so-earnest and far too pretty face swaying his decision. </p>
<p><i>Just do what I’ve done</i>.</p>
<p>“You can’t possibly climax from this,” Hux argued, fighting the inevitable. He knew his decision had been made the instant he chose not to order Ren out of his quarters.</p>
<p><i>Sometimes you just do it because it feels good, not because you’ve got a quota of orgasms you have to reach each month</i>, Kylo laughed. <i>If you take that stick out of your ass, I can put something far more pleasant up there in its place; you’ll just have to suck my fingers first. Try it, I think you’ll like it</i>.</p>
<p>“You drive a hard bargain, Ren. Very well. I’ll allow it,” Hux said, opening his eyes and relaxing a little more. He licked his lips nervously and parted them slightly.</p>
<p><i>I knew you’d see reason</i>, Kylo said, adjusting his position on the edge of the bed and pulling Hux into his lap. He wrapped one arm around his chest and, with his other hand, stroked his jaw, coaxing it open.</p>
<p>Hux squirmed a little, on principle, but he allowed Ren to manhandle him. It appeared Ren was quite enjoying this, his erection already noticeable, trapped within his leggings and pinned between their bodies. Hux let himself relax even further, sinking into Ren’s embrace and letting him lead him—for now. He opened his mouth, parting his teeth; almost immediately, Ren’s thumb was there, pressing against the tip of his tongue. </p>
<p><i>No biting or else I’ll have to put Millie’s cone of shame on <b>you</b></i>, Kylo teased as Hux’s teeth grazed his knuckle as he pushed in further. </p>
<p>Choosing to ignore that comment, Hux closed his eyes, closed his lips around Ren’s thumb, and let himself acclimate. The warmth of Ren’s broad, solid body at his back, Ren’s arm around his torso, large hand splayed over his chest. The layers of clothing still between them. The feeling of skin against skin, Ren’s fingers holding his jaw and chin firmly—but his thumb simply <i>there</i>, a presence in his mouth. Hux didn’t ascribe to florid descriptions. He rather thought Ren’s thumb tasted simply like skin: mostly neutral with a hint of soap. Tentatively, he pushed his tongue up against the digit and hollowed his cheeks to suck. </p>
<p>A contented sigh and hot breath on his neck. Well. Perhaps Ren was simply more sensitive, more receptive to all of his feelings and experiences and senses. Hux wouldn’t say it was the most pleasurable act, but he didn’t find it exactly <i>un</i>pleasant, either. He might not get much from it, but it <i>was</i> in his interests to gain influence over Ren, by whatever means necessary—that alone made it enjoyable. He’d have to keep <i>that</i> particular thought quiet, however. At least Ren seemed preoccupied for the moment. Hux sucked and rolled his tongue around Ren’s thumb, a warm contentment blooming inside him at the quiet little moan Ren gave. Maybe he really was enjoying it that much, maybe it was all for show. Well, he could enjoy a good show, especially for a good reason. He’d allow Ren his harmless little quirks.</p>
<p><i>So? What do you think?</i> Kylo asked, his mental voice managing to be both languid and bursting with expectation. Hux shook his head a little, reminding him that he shouldn’t be expected to answer with his mouth occupied. Kylo withdrew his thumb slowly, painting a trail of saliva down Hux’s chin.</p>
<p>“Not as bad as I had feared,” Hux replied with the slightest hint of a laugh under his words. “I could probably be convinced to do it again.”</p>
<p><i>Oh, <b>high</b> praise</i>, Kylo chuckled and pressed his lips to the nape of Hux’s neck.</p>
<p>Hux smirked, turning his head to look at Ren behind him. “I’ve held up my end of the deal. I believe you promised if I ‘took the stick out of my arse,’ you’d find something more pleasant to replace it.”</p>
<p><i>Yeah, I guess I did</i>, Kylo said, baring his teeth in a grin.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I absolutely handwaved the medical things around simply so I could make a cone of shame joke. No regrets.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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